Wanted to add to this thread something I wrote last year for a speech competition, FYI I am a male international student, 5 nationalities (would not consider myself BAME (make of the term what you like) but I am ethnically/religiously/linguistically diverse).
How do you feel the commercial legal industry has evolved in the last 10 years regarding BAME representation? And What do you feel FIRM NAME can do to attract black talent into the industry? Feel free to discuss initiatives the firm has already implemented.
Hello, my name is Kokothemagicdragon. I’m a second year Law with French Law student with COUNTRY, COUNTRY 2, and COUNTRY 3 origins educated in international schools. Even though I do not represent the “Black, Asian and Ethnic Minorities” category, I believe that I can offer a new voice, perspective and maybe even opinion on the commercial legal industry’s evolution regarding BAME representation, the issue’s significance on all legal workers regardless of identity and how rectifying this issue would positively help commercial law firms in both diversity and business perspectives. In this short speech, I will first speak on the issue of diversity and inclusion at commercial law firms and how data gathered by the Solicitors Regulation Authority mirrors the lack of change. I will then speak on the initiatives FIRM NAME has implemented to attract black talent and potential schemes FIRM NAME could further implement.
Large commercial firms accommodate rich and influential clients, while often overlooking those who need the law the most. Those are the people who are fighting for justice, fairness, and the supposedly inalienable right to equality. This inequality parallels the Black, Asian, and Ethnic Minority representation not only at senior roles in law firms, but also on a general scale. Although I believe that I am far from understanding the nature by which large law firms operate, and have not had to deal with the systematic racism and uphill battles Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority individuals fight in the legal environment, I do believe as a privileged white male who might hopefully one day integrate the legal field that I have a duty both to myself and others to try to find and implement solutions that combat the root of racial inequality in the commercial legal industry.
As with any problem, the first step to identifying a potential solution to the serious lack of BAME representation in the commercial legal industry is to look at its current state. The Solicitors Regulation Authority has routinely released statistics regarding diversity in all categories. In 2017, the SRA released data it collected from over 180,000 people working at 9,000 firms, this data set represented just over 70% of solicitors who hold a practising degree. It determined that the proportion of BAME solicitors increased by over 7%, from 14% to 21% since the SRA’s first data set collected in 2014. While these figures indicate an overall upward trend in diversity and inclusion, they do not accurately paint the commercial legal industry and its evolution during the last decade. The 7% increase is mainly due to the 5% increase in Asian lawyers over the three year span, while Black lawyers on the other hand only increased by 2% from a laughable 1% to a measly 3%. Moreover, the representation is skewed towards criminal and private work with BAME representation being 33 and 37% respectively. In firms operating within a mixed range of sectors and those in corporate law, the representation is lowest at around 12 and 19%. This highlights the commercial legal industry’s lack of inclusion and the statistic that a 1% increase from 7 to 8% of partners at law firms with 50 plus partners, being BAME proves that even cases where BAME lawyers incorporate a law firm, career mobility is limited for them.
So, the data suggests there is an issue with the access to legal employment and one of upward mobility for BAME.
As I previously disclaimed, I naturally don’t know how law firms truly operate both in hiring and promoting lawyers, but the statistics do create a feeling of injustice in me. This disappointment amplified when looking at the SRA’s 2020 statistics, the overall proportions have not changed, and the proportion of BAME lawyers working in corporate law have actually fallen to 15%. Although one can and the SRA has argued that statistics such as these are gathered from huge data sets and therefore require a long time to change, I believe that in western societies that are increasingly polarized and fractured due to racial and ethnic tensions, that with events such as George Floyd’s murder, BLM, Charlottesville Protests, and consequent protests, that all firms would do more.
Perhaps it is too optimistic of me to have regarded these events as sure-fire catalysts for larger BAME diversity and inclusion in commercial law firms, but it is undeniable on the work environment and business plans that diversity and inclusion are positive. Not only does it help those from BAME backgrounds to better integrate and be supported by the firms, but it also aids those who are already in the firm to become more knowledgeable. Knowledge is power, and the commercial legal industry is as much a legal enterprise as it is a customer service job. And having the opportunity to be continuously surrounded by people with different cultures, identities, histories, communities, and values makes one more human, more understanding and perhaps, more empathetic, but in any case, more effective.
Furthermore, an often overlooked aspect which diversity and inclusion carries is the help it brings to the ever growing customer diversity which commercial law firms experience. Our world is globalising, and the need to understand and properly communicate and operate with a variety of international and national businesses is central to commercial law and can only be fostered by a company which promotes diversity and inclusion. Overall, the commercial legal industry has not evolved sufficiently in the past 10 years and having larger BAME representation not only could help cut cognitive biases and wrong judgments and conclusions, but it could lead to better service to the diverse range of corporate customers of law firms.
Having determined that the commercial legal sector is lagging in BAME diversity and inclusion and having spoken on the various benefits which tackling this problem could bring, I’d like to focus on black talent. Black people, unlike Asian people who are statistically overrepresented in law firms, are represented in line with their representation in the overall workforce and population. This however does not mean that all black talent is being employed nor attracted in the legal sector. I believe that FIRM NAME’ inclusion of Rare Recruitment’s Contextual Recruitment System and work with Bright Network is a clearly positive and proven method to promote and support black talent. Moreover, “the inclusion of a new religious and cultural events calendar and increase of the frequency of internal cultural events at the firm; and implementing a BAME reverse mentoring programme facilitated by Afua Hirsch” along with the work with an “external BAME solicitor and career coach to deliver an initiative for all of our BAME solicitors” means that black talent will be able not only to feel included, but to be included. It is a two way road being given the opportunity to understand and being understood.
The attraction of black talent is not a numbers game, the investing in the talent is far more important. If a commercial law firm hires many black lawyers but doesn’t invest in them, give them client facing roles, nor aid their career mobility, it is simply a method to provide statistics that look good on paper. If FIRM NAME however works and mentors the black talent which it employs as it states on its website, then it truly has a chance of rectifying a major issue. I also believe that implementing these mentoring programs at a university and even already at a secondary school level could help black talent not only with the various routes towards working in the industry, possibly even at FIRM NAME but also show why FIRM NAME is different and deserves to be “named as a top 10 outstanding employer for investing in ethnicity”.
I really believe that investing in inclusive opportunities and programmes like FIRM NAME does is important because it opens doors to BAME talent who otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity, adds to a collective and humane work environment, improves the work the firm produces, and is line with FIRM NAME culture.